AI Apps Create Fake Vacations for Digital Escapism

The New Age of Faking It

Faking wealth has always been big business, from designer knock-offs to renting out private jet interiors for the perfect Instagram shot. But today, artificial intelligence is making this practice more personal. People are now using AI to create photos of themselves living in luxury, not just to chase online clout, but as a form of private escapism or an attempt to manifest a better life.

AI as a Tool for Escapism and Manifestation

This trend is gaining significant traction globally. App developer Tim Wijaya shared his findings on X after doing consulting work for OpenAI. He studied how Indonesians were using ChatGPT and discovered large Facebook groups, some with over 30,000 members, dedicated to sharing AI-generated photos of themselves enjoying luxury experiences. These images ranged from posing with Lamborghinis to shopping sprees at Gucci.

According to Wijaya, most of these users are from lower-middle-income backgrounds in smaller cities, earning under $400 per month. He noted, “It’s both sad and fascinating that using AI has become a form of escapism, letting people experience lives they’ll probably never live.”

Apps Capitalizing on the AI Dream

Developers are quickly moving to meet this new demand. Laurent Del Rey, a product designer at Meta’s Superintelligence lab, recently launched a side project called Endless Summer. As Del Rey explained on X, the social media app is for “when burnout hits and you need to manifest the soft life [you] deserve - with fake vacation pics of you.”

Endless Summer is just one of many AI manifestation apps appearing on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Others include “Manifest AI Coach: Dreams Made,” which claims to create “vision backgrounds” for goal visualization, and ManifestMe, which generates visuals aligned with your “manifestation goals and energy.” However, many of these apps don't quite live up to their promises, often delivering text-based affirmations alongside generic AI art instead of personalized images.

Putting AI Vacations to the Test

Out of the apps tested, Endless Summer was the one that actually delivered. The process was simple: I uploaded three photos of myself, which the app used as source material for "fictional vacation photos." It quickly generated an image of me in Tokyo, another in what looked like a New York bodega (complete with nonsensical AI-generated text on the boxes), and a third of me at an outdoor dinner in Rio de Janeiro. The resemblance wasn't perfect, but the virtual me looked great.

So, did watching my digital doppelgänger enjoy the good life make me feel better? Not really. The images had that distinct AI-generated look, a constant reminder that they were fake. Perhaps my experience was also shaped by the fact that I already live in a major city and don't feel particularly deprived of experiences. The free trial ended abruptly after three images, prompting me to pay to continue the "summer."

The Real Cost of a Fake Getaway

The app offered several packages to continue generating images: $3.99 for 30, $17.99 for 150, or $34.99 for 300. At that rate, the cost starts to feel tangible. For the price of a few hundred fake photos, I could afford a real outdoor dinner or put it towards a budget flight to an actual new destination. This raises the question of where the true value lies—in a fleeting digital fantasy or a more modest, but real, experience.